


A Room Full of Cellos

by Daydream46000



Category: DuckTales (Cartoon 2017)
Genre: Angst and Feels, Angst with a Happy Ending, Apologies, Canon Universe, DON'T POST ELSEWHERE WITHOUT MY PERMISSION!, Family Fluff, Gen, Guilt, Musical Instruments, Regret, Sad Scrooge McDuck, Scrooge McDuck Has Feelings, Self-Reflection
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-11
Updated: 2020-07-11
Packaged: 2021-03-05 04:09:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,341
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25208242
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Daydream46000/pseuds/Daydream46000
Summary: When Scrooge enters a room full of cellos, painful memories begin to resurface. Set after the Season 1 finale.
Relationships: Scrooge McDuck & Huey Duck & Dewey Duck & Louie Duck
Comments: 1
Kudos: 11
Collections: DuckTales 'verse





	A Room Full of Cellos

**Author's Note:**

> This fic is set after *The Shadow War! (S1E23)* but before *The Most Dangerous...Game Night! (S2E1)*.
> 
> It's also a tribute to one of my favorite real-life bands: 2CELLOS.  
> Hopefully they'll resume playing in 2021 once all this chaos is over.
> 
> Anyway, enjoy! :)

**_NOBODY’S P.O.V._ **

******SATURDAY, 04/07/2012******

The war against Magica De Spell was finally over, and everyone was exhausted, especially one particular decades-old man from Scotland. Despite reconciling with his family, he still distanced himself from them, afraid that they’d fall apart again at the drop of a hat.

Deep down, Scrooge knew that things would never be the same again. His great-nephews already discovered the truth behind their mother’s disappearance, and who knew the next time they’d use that against him. **_Yep_** _. They_ **_still resent me_ ** _for it._ He thought bitterly. 

So what was the _point_ in trying anymore? Maybe he was better off alone, like he had been for the past decade. Scrooge had done it before, and he could do it again! He didn’t need anyone but himself! So what if he was alone again? He’d be able to handle it....right?

These thoughts continued swirling inside his head while walking slowly towards the room below his office. Before Donald and Della were born, it used to be empty, but now there were dozens of cellos in an assortment of colors (wood, pink, purple, blue, etc).

Entering the open space, he closed the doors carefully and halted once he reached the center of the room. The billionaire’s knees wobbled slightly as he did a full 360-degree turn, gazing despondently at every single cello that was plastered on the walls.

And that’s when he remembered—Della used to _love_ hearing the cello. According to her, it was the most beautiful string instrument in the world. Sometimes, Scrooge would play something for her when she was little. Most of them were classical pieces, but some of them were more contemporary.

After she left, he played morose songs and enlisted his butler Duckworth, who was still alive back then, to play the piano accompaniment in this very room. Scrooge poured out his loneliness and despair through these songs.

But then he realized—it wouldn’t bring Della back. It didn’t then and it wouldn’t now. His beloved niece was gone forever, lost in the dark and dangerous abyss of space. All because of him! If he hadn’t built that stupid rocket in the first place, she would’ve been here on Earth, happily raising the boys. They would’ve had a _mother_.

Now it was too late, and nothing would ever make it okay again. Scrooge was all alone. He had been since Donald literally screamed in his face, blaming the old man for his sister’s apparent death before storming out of the house and taking her three eggs, planning on never coming back....

Until he did. Donald was desperate for another babysitter after the previous one failed to make it on time. He initially wanted Mrs. Beakley to watch over the boys. Scrooge eventually volunteered to do so himself, having regained his confidence in adventures.

Six months later? Huey, Dewey, and Louie spat out countless accusations, berating Scrooge for what he did to their mom. As a result, they left the mansion for three days straight, wanting to cut off all ties with the ‘selfish old miser who didn’t deserve any love’. But thanks to Bentina, they eventually forgave him.

Back in the present, however, it was too much for Scrooge to handle, so he fell onto his knees and broke down in tears. He cried over everything—from losing Della to his fallout with Donald for the next 10.5 years, and finally his family temporarily disowning him after the Sunchaser crashed last week.

“Uncle Scrooge?” a distant voice called from the entrance. It was male and sort of high-pitched, so most likely one of the triplets. But which one?

“What the—?” another high-pitched voice whispered. Yep, also male.

“What‘s going on?” the third voice hissed, mirroring the tone of the first two voices.

Soon, the three figures approached Scrooge carefully while trying not to trip over the splintered pieces of wood on the floor.

“Looks like the cellos on the floor got destroyed,” the blue-clad figure informed the others.

“Gee, ya _think_?” the green-clad figure replied sarcastically while rolling his eyes.

“Uh guys? I don’t think that’s the _real_ issue here,” the red-clad figure pointed out, gesturing towards the sobbing figure on his knees, eyes closed.

Once Scrooge opened them, the others gasped. They were bloodshot and baggy, dark circles forming under his eyelids due to lack of sleep.

“K-Kids, I uh—” he stuttered, face twisting in sorrow and self-loathing again. “I’m sorry,” he whispered tearfully.

“What? Why are you sorry?” Huey gaped, his tone sincere and full of worry while falling onto his own knees. Honestly, the oldest triplet had never seen his uncle in such a vulnerable state before, and it scared him.

“Because you three were right. I-I built her a crazy super rocket. _I’m_ the reason she’s gone,” Scrooge blurted out, wiping his nose with his sleeve.

The triplets glanced at each other sadly before the younger two sat down on either side of Huey.

“No, I-I shouldn’t have said that. I was just so angry a-and— _I’m_ the one who should be sorry. I convinced Huey and Louie to cut you out of our lives completely, but I didn’t think how badly Mom’s disappearance affected you too. I mean, you witnessed it firsthand. We weren’t even _born_ yet,” Dewey admitted.

“Yeah, we were assholes to you, and I guess to everyone else too. We only thought about ourselves,” Louie added, feeling ashamed.

“If anything, we don’t deserve _you_. We don’t deserve anybody, not even Uncle Donald,” Huey elaborated with a lot of emotion.

“Ever the feisty little brats,” Dewey said, chuckling sadly.

“Maybe you can replace us with one of our doppelgängers. I’m sure they’ll treat you better—unlike _us_ ,” Louie spoke with a self-defeating tone, gesturing to himself and his brothers.

“Do you uh—d’you want us to _leave_? For good?” the oldest sibling said softly, afraid that Scrooge would say yes.

“D’you wanna cut us out of your life? If you do, w-we get it,” the middle child emphasized, also anticipating the worst while silently praying that it wouldn’t happen.

“Y-Yeah. I’m sure we’ll find another relative who’ll be forced to deal with us,” the youngest added, chortling humorlessly.

It was then Scrooge realized—he was wrong before. He _definitely_ needed them. More than anything! He couldn’t spend another decade playing solitaire. The old man needed company. He yearned for his family, the ones who loved and cared for him unconditionally (and vice-versa). 

So no, he couldn’t—he _wouldn’t_ lose them again! It was time to put things to rest and move on. Scrooge wasn’t going to constantly dwell on the past anymore. Frankly, it had a negative effect on his mental _and_ physical health, so he’d resume therapy as soon as possible.

But first, he had to make sure his great-nephews understood one thing. They would _never_ be unloved or unwanted by him, no matter how horrible things had gotten lately. In order to show that, the older duck wrapped his arms around the 10-year-olds and brought them close, tears soaking their head feathers.

“N-No, please don’t leave! Not again,” he begged tearfully. “I-I love—!” Though Scrooge couldn’t complete his sentence, the boys got it.

“I know. We love you too,” Huey told him sweetly, the three of them embracing their uncle in return.

“We’re not going anywhere, I promise,” Dewey said reassuringly while smiling.

“In any case, I’m too lazy to leave,” Louie added jokingly, causing Scrooge to laugh through his tears. He then kissed their heads gently before ruffling their hair.

“Oh lads. What will I do without you?” the old man murmured while grinning himself. Well, at least the tears finally stopped. The triplets remained in his warm embrace, yawning slightly.

After a few minutes, Scrooge surveyed the area and noticed that some of the cellos on the floor were broken, but could easily be fixed. The same thing applied to his family. Sometimes, they’d fight and argue, but eventually, they’d reconcile and be whole again.

C’EST FINI

**Author's Note:**

> I feel like Scrooge didn't have any real closure with his nephews, so that's why I wrote this fic. Hope you liked it. :)
> 
> P.S. If you haven't heard of 2CELLOS, check out some of their videos on YouTube:  
> \- "Thunderstruck" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uT3SBzmDxGk)  
> \- "Hysteria" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gHbwAd5gkMM)  
> \- "The Godfather Theme" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sbCOtg3JY3s)  
> \- "Mombasa" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LY39km8rkWY)
> 
> I DO NOT OWN *Ducktales (2017)*!! All CANON dialogues are credited to the WRITERS/PRODUCERS/DIRECTORS of the show!! :)


End file.
